Our Fitness Blog

Permit, Don't Restrict: The Mental Approach To Food

Let's examine some words/phrases that are associated with diets and losing weight… "Restriction", "I can't have that", "low-calorie", "restrict your carbohydrates"; and so on and so forth. None of this seems to be a whole lot of fun or all that exciting, huh? No, not at all; and these are some of the main reasons why diets and restriction of certain foods, calories, etc., doesn't work and will never work. From a numbers/objective perspective, this is a complete train wreck. And then, from a mental/mindset perspective, this is also a train wreck.

Think about it, when our mind is consumed with "restriction" when it comes to foods, this is not good. Food is nourishment; food is essential for the body; food is essential for life; food is essential for brain health; food is essential for good mental acuity. Therefore, when our mind is always focused on, "I have to lose weight", this leads us to the restriction mindset. With this mindset, we are not focused on fueling the body and brain properly, rather, we are focused on restricting the body and brain of the fuel it needs.

So many individuals have the weight loss mindset that "less is better." And this will lead them to either skipping breakfast and/or other meals or having something so minimal that it's essentially skipping breakfast/meals/snacks. These individuals will try to significantly restrict calorie intake throughout the day, thinking that this is going to assist them in weight loss. These individuals literally punish themselves when it comes to eating and food.

We want to do a complete 180° mental shift and we want to permit and not restrict. Let's look at the definition of the word, permit: to allow and to afford the opportunity. Next, let's look at the definition of the word, restrict: to confine or keep within limits. Let's completely omit the "restrict mindset" and let's embrace and adopt the "permit mindset."

We want to allow the body to be properly fueled. We want to allow the brain to be properly fueled. We want to afford the opportunity for our body and mind to function at a premium. And to do this, we have to fuel the body properly. So how do we start to make this change with our nutrition? The key is to choose meals and snacks based on how they're going to fuel your body properly. We do not want to choose meals and snacks based on how they are going to "help us lose weight"; when we have this mindset, we lean towards restriction. We restrict calories by choosing a very low-calorie, non-usable food sources. We restrict calories by skipping meals altogether. We restrict calories by trying to go as long as possible throughout the day and not eat. And it is this restriction mindset and the resulting actions that come from it that create a very fast downward spiral.

We want the body and brain to thrive and to do so let's allow the body to be fueled right and let's give our body and brain the best opportunity possible to function at its highest level possible. I realize this is a huge, huge shift mentally. Individuals, still today, think that restriction is the key to success. But, these are also the same individuals that will admit they never lose any weight, they are always overweight, they are always battling weight loss and they are always looking for the next weight loss secret, diet and/or food fad.

In summary, 9R Nutrition will help take the thinking out of this process for you. How? All you have to do is start following the meal matrix spot-on. This will ensure that your body and brain is being properly fueled at every meal and snack. This is not about restriction, this is not about a diet; rather, every meal and snack that is part of 9R Nutrition is all about fueling the body and brain properly. Let's permit the body and brain to be properly fueled and let's not restrict it.